Best still-playing former Chicago athlete we wish were still in town

Thomas Jones
Perhaps GM Jerry Angelo’s greatest flub, the abandonment of running back Thomas Jones after the 2006 Super Bowl season, in a misguided attempt to make then-recently drafted Cedric Benson the man, has played a large part in the Bears’ offensive troubles in the seasons since. Matt Forte is a strong back, to be sure, but as most NFL teams have moved to running-back tandems and away from classic featured backs, Forte is left with failed experiment Chester Taylor. (And before that Garrett Wolfe, and before that “the other” Adrian Peterson.) Can you imagine the Bears’ running game if we had held on to Jones? The trade for Jay Cutler, dare we say, may have been unnecessary. Numbers don’t lie—in the three seasons he played with the Jets after the Bears let him go, he rushed for 1,119 yards, 1,312 yards and 1,402 yards, respectively. Not only is that tremendous production, with each year the 32-year-old is improving. He also scored fourteen touchdowns last year. This season, for the Kansas City Chiefs, he’s threatening 1,000-yard production again and has five TDs. We honestly can’t elaborate any more right now, because it’s making us sick.